Mae Sai Temple Denies Scam Gang Links After Police Raid
Mae Sai’s prominent temple denied any link to a scam gang after being raided by six government agencies. The inspection followed a suspect who tried to smuggle over 20 million baht across the border and had once been a novice monk at the temple. Authorities say the operation targeted fraudulent ID networks, while the temple reports normal activity continues.
The famous Mae Sai temple insists it has no ties to a scam gang following a raid by six agencies. The abbot said the check came about because a suspect in the case had once been a novice monk at the temple. On October 9, 2024, reporters said the temple in Mae Sai district, Chiang Rai province, was inspected by officers from six agencies operating under the 'Expose the Northern Shadow' campaign, which targets fraudulent registration networks and the illegal use of zero‑number ID cards. Observers noted that vendors and worshippers still come to the temple’s entrance and go inside as they normally do. The abbot added that earlier checks by various agencies had looked for the scam gang but found neither the group nor any wrongdoing by the temple. He said the reason for the temple visit was a suspect attempting to smuggle more than 20 million baht across the border; that individual had merely been a former novice monk. The temple firmly denies any knowledge or participation in the scam. Regarding reports of many foreigners being ordained at the temple and facing charges—19 cases in total—the abbot said he does not know the details because the temple currently has only eight resident novices, none of whom have been charged. He suggested the information might refer to the past, when he was deputy abbot and many youths came to ordain as novices and monks. In 2016, the village applied for zero‑number ID cards for locals, and twelve temple novices or monks met the criteria and received the cards, though this had nothing to do with the temple. Those individuals later disrobed and never returned, not even to make merit, until learning that one of them had been arrested as a scammer, which led to the investigation of the temple.
